“Just because I made a movie doesn’t mean I don’t miss you. Yes, I admit I’ve sampled the Hollywood lifestyle. I’d be crazy not to experience life. One of my personal goals is ‘no regrets.’ Someone told me one time that going to Las Vegas is a lot of fun, but they could only stand to be there for a few days. LA has been fun, but I’m ready to go home. I miss spending time with you, and this week I’ve had a lot of time to think about things. I want to get to know you better.”
“Does that mean you want to be my boyfriend?” Brook asked.
“No,” I laughed. “I’m still not ready for that. But when I am, I want to know if the two of us would be a good match.”
“You do realize that if you’d just said ‘yes,’ you might have gotten lucky tonight,” she teased.
I didn’t get a chance to answer her because we were there.
◊◊◊
The TCL Chinese Theatre is a cinema palace on the historic Hollywood Walk of Fame. The Chinese Theater had been home to the most prominent red-carpet movie premieres and special events since the late 1920s. Recently TCL,
Forty-foot curved walls protected the forecourt, and copper topped the turrets. The entrance featured two gigantic coral-red columns topped by wrought iron masks that held the bronze roof aloft. Between the columns was a 30-foot dragon carved from stone that guarded the theater’s entrance along with two original giant Heaven Dogs brought from China. Of all the places in LA, this was where I would want to have the premiere. It just felt right to have this red-carpet event at such a historic Hollywood icon.
They had it set up so that the red carpet led you past a horde of reporters. I watched as Rita led everyone out of the first car. We were held in place to allow them time to work their way down the carpet and be interviewed. The reporters were on one side of the carpet behind a fence. On the other was a wall with posters of the movie that served as a backdrop for the pictures taken.
It was finally our turn, and our limo pulled forward. I helped Brook out of the car, and the flashes started with shouted questions. I held Brook back a moment before we faced them. She looked up at me and nodded that she was ready, so I led her into the heart of the mass of reporters. Brook took a step back as I engaged them and answered their questions. I probably said I was excited at least fifty times.
Frank had told me to take my time and talk to as many of the reporters as wanted to speak to me. Brook patiently waited as I did the interviews. While I was talking, Bree arrived. She’d brought her mom as her guest. I introduced them to Brook and returned to answering questions. Bree joined me, and we fell into our well-practiced routine. We made a good team.
When the press was done with us, Bree and I walked over and waved to all the fans who had come to see the stars. Bree’s mom and Brook went inside. We finally made our way in and found our groups.
One of the upgrades to the theater was they now had IMAX. It was a totally unique experience in comparison to my previous viewings. You could hear every whisper over your shoulder. You felt every explosion. Every note of the score was crystal clear. It made what had been done in postproduction shine. I watched the reaction of the people who hadn’t seen it before, and I could tell we’d done well. I had no worries this film would make money.
◊◊◊
The post-party was held at the Beverly Wilshire Four Seasons’ ballroom. When we got back to the hotel, all the women went upstairs to change. Frank, Saul, and I hung out and waited. I spotted a buffet, and we decided to eat before the night got away from us.
“You’ve had a good week. I wanted to wait until after the premiere to tell you that the
“Tell him about the James Bond movie,” Frank prompted.
“Yeah, tell me about James Bond,” I said.
“They haven’t announced it yet, but you got it.”
I must have looked stunned because the women came back and wanted to know what was wrong. Up until Saul had just told me that, this whole movie gig felt like it was temporary; something I would do, make a little money, and then move on with my life. Him telling me that I’d made the cut to the next round for the
